I Saw More Marine Life Snorkeling Than Most People See Diving: Here’s How
The Secret is to Slow Down
On my first snorkeling trip, I swam frantically, trying to see everything. I saw very little. The next day, I tried a new technique. I found a small patch of reef and just stayed there, floating motionless on the surface for 20 minutes. At first, I saw nothing. Then, as the marine life realized I wasn’t a threat, the reef came alive. Tiny, hidden shrimp emerged, a shy octopus crawled out from a rock, and schools of fish that had been hiding returned. The secret wasn’t to search for life, but to be still and let life reveal itself to you.
The One Skill That Will Cut Your Air Consumption in Half
The Buddha Breath
When I started scuba diving, I would burn through my air tank incredibly fast. I was breathing shallowly and quickly, like on the surface. An experienced divemaster taught me the “Buddha breath.” He told me to breathe slowly and deeply, from my diaphragm. A long, 6-second inhale, followed by a long, 8-second exhale. This calm, meditative breathing not only relaxed my body and mind but also made my air consumption incredibly efficient. I could suddenly stay down twice as long on the same tank of air.
How to Defog Your Mask Permanently (It’s Not Spit)
The Flame and the Toothpaste
My dive mask would fog up constantly, no matter how much anti-fog spray or spit I used. The problem, I learned, is a thin layer of silicone residue left over from the manufacturing process. The permanent fix is a two-step process. First, you take a lighter and carefully burn off this invisible film from the inside of the lens. Then, you scrub the inside of the lens aggressively with a plain, white, non-gel toothpaste. After this one-time treatment, my mask has never fogged up again.
The Most Underrated Dive Destination in the World
The Cold, Green Waters of British Columbia
Everyone dreams of diving in the warm, blue, tropical waters. I went scuba diving in British Columbia, Canada. The water was cold and green. But what I saw blew me away. The cold, nutrient-rich water supports an incredible amount of life. I saw giant Pacific octopuses, wolf eels, and walls covered in massive, colorful anemones. It was a vibrant, alien world that was more spectacular and full of life than many of the coral reefs I had visited.
I Got My Scuba Certification for a Fraction of the Price
The Local Dive Shop vs. The Resort
I wanted to get scuba certified for an upcoming tropical vacation. The resort was charging a fortune for the certification course. I called my local dive shop at home, and their course was less than half the price. I did all my classroom and pool training at home in the evenings. Then, when I went on vacation, I just had to do my four “checkout” dives with a local instructor. This “referral” method saved me hundreds of dollars and meant I didn’t have to spend my precious vacation time in a classroom.
The Most Dangerous Creature in the Ocean Is Not What You Think
The Panic in the Diver’s Own Mind
Before my first dive, I was terrified of sharks and jellyfish. After hundreds of dives, I’ve learned that the single most dangerous creature a diver will ever encounter is the panic in their own mind. I’ve seen divers get into a dangerous situation because a small, fixable problem—like a leaky mask—spiraled into a full-blown panic. Staying calm, breathing slowly, and methodically solving the problem is the most important safety skill in scuba diving.
How to Take Amazing Underwater Photos With a GoPro
Red Filter is a Non-Negotiable
My first GoPro videos underwater were a disappointment. Everything was a monochromatic, washed-out blue. The reason is that water filters out the red light spectrum. The secret to getting beautiful, vibrant underwater color is a simple red filter that snaps onto the front of the GoPro’s housing. The moment I put one on, the reds and yellows came back, and the underwater world looked as colorful and vibrant on camera as it did to my own eyes.
The Difference Between a $300 and a $1,000 Regulator
The Ease of Breathing at Depth
I started with a basic, $300 regulator set. It worked fine in the shallow water of a swimming pool. When I dived deeper, to 100 feet, I noticed it became much harder to breathe. The air felt thick. I later tried a high-end, $1,000 regulator. At depth, it breathed as if I was on the surface. The expensive models are engineered to deliver air effortlessly, regardless of the ambient pressure. You aren’t paying for safety—they are all safe—you are paying for comfort and ease of breathing in challenging conditions.
I Went on a Liveaboard Dive Trip: Was It Worth It?
Eat, Sleep, Dive, Repeat
I decided to splurge on a week-long “liveaboard” dive trip, where you live on the boat and travel to remote dive sites. It was worth every single penny. Instead of one or two dives a day, we were doing four or five. I would wake up, dive, eat breakfast, dive, eat lunch, dive, have a snack, and then do a night dive. This total immersion allowed me to see pristine reefs untouched by day-trippers and to develop my dive skills at an incredible rate. It was the most epic and efficient dive vacation imaginable.
The Hand Signal Every Diver Needs to Know (That’s Not in the Book)
The “Tank Banger” Rattle
The official hand signals for getting your buddy’s attention work fine, but only if they are looking at you. The most effective, universal, and un-official signal is the “tank banger.” It’s a simple elastic band with a hard plastic ball on it that you stretch around your tank. If you need to get anyone’s attention for any reason, you just pull the ball back and let it snap against your tank. The sharp “clack” sound cuts through the water and instantly gets the attention of everyone around you.